#We are souls singing about inmortal love

[hawkmoon269]

Cole Porter's "Night and Day" performed by U2. Red Hot+Blue Campaing, 1990. [x]

🎥 Directed by Win Wenders, Berlin.

[gr4veyardz]

Cookie Run headcanons except i’m obsessed with the ancients, i’m insane and i make weird family trees

Plus some extras under the cut

- I like the idea of Moonlight being Lily and Clover’s other mom, y’all know, two lesbian gods, their god-like child and their funky music son.

- Adding to this, Clover often talks about his family in his songs, hoping to meet one of them one day. Poor boy he misses his mom and sister:(

- Before her dissapearance, Golden Cheese had the opportunity to meet Mango; he was very young at the time so he would follow them everywhere she go, and Ananas gave her the nickname mom duck.

- White Lily knew she wasn’t the role model her brother needed, so after what happened with her mother she left Clover in an orphanage/convent, promising that she would send him letters every day. She kept up her promise for a few years until she became an ancient hero.

- If we consider that maybe the Dark Flour War happened centuries ago, Clover would be inmortal in a "i'm pretty much a normal guy with the exception i can't die of age or sickness" kinda way. So yeah he would be like- super old but he still has a young adult's body

- Mango sometimes asks Ananas about what happened to Golden Cheese, and even though they tell him that she is fine, he knows that not even his father knows what happened to them.

- Ananas hid Cheese for a long time after she was born, feathered dragons were viewed with distaste among their race, so they took her with the cheesebirds to make them their leader.

- Pitaya allows Lotus to stay in Holly’s kingdom even with their territorial behaviour, they know Lotus mourned their daughter’s “death” during a long time and now that she’s back they both deserve to work on their issues.

-  Lotus and Hollyberry dynamic is some “i left her alone in the woods all by herself when she was a child to test her sense of direction and i’m not ashamed to admit it” and “the only one allowed to piss off my mom is ME” kinda thing. A big love/hate relationship.

- Ah yes, the good ol' mommy issues strike again.

- Hollyberry has a great singing voice, Lotus cherish that aspect of her in secret.

- Frost Queen raised Cacao after he was left in the woods to die as a baby after being "the victim of a curse" (his parents were just idiots), and she took him in as her son. I see her making some kind of ritual to bond Cacao with her, y'know, adoption with extra steps.

- Linked to this we can see my other hc where Cacao was like a Frozen Child that died and reborned in a "normal" body because he was fated to be an ancient hero and shit like that.

- And in general i just like the concept of grim reaper deity and her inmortal child with severe trauma he bottles up, him becoming a legend in a harsh and traumatic way and leaving this deity without the only living being her deadly touch can't affect. (Add some mourning and maybe an emotional/mental breakdown after a reunion and you get a completely healthy mother with her son)

- If we expand this to Choco, he would have been shocked at the fact the goddess his kind use to pray to is his grandmother, his father is just a frozen forest spirit that reached godhood after endless trials and trauma and he himself is a demigod with a tragic fate, yeah what a family he has.

"do you remember Frost Queen?"

"she's my mom"

"yeah, why?"

"... so you're telling me that there's a goddess of death out there..."

"yup"

"we pray to and worship often, and we are related to her"

"exactly"

"and that makes us... GODS?!"

"only me, but my body is technically just a vessel to protect my soul, which is inside the souljam at the same time ironically, and my trials made me reach a god-like status, meanwhile you're like a demigod"

"sweet gods" (and Choco forgot that conversation for his own sanity)

- The reason Millenial Tree and Pure Vanilla have such a conflicted relationship is because Millenial practically left his son to be raised by other people while he focused in his godly duties, so Wind Archer took care of Vanilla instead.

- After years of constant neglect by his father, Vanilla ran away and became a shepherd at a very young age, not that he was alone, Archer kept an eye on him for as long as he could until he entered the academy, that was where Vanilla was separated from his protector for many years until he became an ancient hero.

- It was not that Millenial had not loved his son, he loved him too much in fact, but to protect him from the evils he had to face, he pushed him away and left him in the forest, where the god believed he would be safe, but Vanilla ran away from him instead.

- After the Dark Flour War Millenial searched for any clue that could lead him back to his son, It would take decades for him to hear from Vanilla, now Healer Cookie, again.

- If i had to choose a dynamic for them, it would be "a broken family trying to fix itself, only to fall apart every time". Sad.

- But not everything is bad my kids, they eventually meet again and Millenial has a second chance to be the father his son needed, Vanilla is not thrilled by this at all.

[naldoreth]

So, top three songs that remind you of Elin & Legolas? ❤️

Thanks for the ask! I love it. So, first of all, a bit of explanation as to wtf Elin & Legolas is for those of you who don’t know. I’m writing a very lengthy, very slowburn fic Legolas x human OFC - yes, it’s got everything, it’s got “girl falls in Middle Earth”, it’s got “Tenth Walker”, it’s got dwarven culture and slowbuild and a lot of mutual pinning. So for this fic I have a Spotify playlist with, as of today, 40 songs on it that remind me of Elin and her relationship with Legolas, her journey through Middle Earth and her searching for home. But now, to the question in case: my top three songs for these two lovebirds. I have considered things carefully and, right now -this could change in the future as I expand the playlist- these are my fave songs, and I’ll explain WHY cause we’re here for the rant. 1. Young and beautiful - Lana del Rey Will you still love me When I’m no longer young and beautiful? Will you still love me When I’ve got nothing but my aching soul? I know you will, I know you will I know that you will Will you still love me when I’m no longer beautiful? Dear lord, when I get to heaven Please let me bring my man When he comes tell me that you’ll let him in Father tell me if you can All that grace, all that body All that face, makes me wanna party He’s my sun, he makes me shine like diamonds So, I know this one is the most obvious for an elven/human couple, but it just fits so well. I can totally see Elin asking herself these same questions, having so many doubts about engaging in a relationship with Legolas ‘cause she knows she is gonna age and die in front of his eyes and he will remain young, beautiful… and heartbroken. The verse where she’s addressing God I think is specially heartbreaking, because in Tolkien legendarium elven and human souls don’t go to the same place. Elin and Legolas will never have the comfort of knowing that they will see each other again. In case you don’t know, the elvish fëa, their soul, goes to the Halls of Mandos when an elf dies and it rests there until the soul is healed and ready to be reborn. Then the elf will be born again (the canon differs between being reborn as a child that will gain their memories with time or just come back as the elf as they were before). Elves really don’t die unless they choose not to leave the Hall of Mandos or, in rare cases such as Arwen or Luthien, trade their inmortality completely. But it’s different with humans. Humans in Middle Earth die just as we do, and nobody knows where do their souls go or if they go somewhere. That is something only Eru Illúvatar knows and not even Mandos or any of the Valar have any clue. That is the Gift of Men. And Legolas and Elin are very aware of this. They know that the brief time of Elin’s life is ALL they have, and it breaks my heart just imagining Elin praying to Eru to let her be with him one more time, after her death. ‘Cause she forsook her time and her home to save Middle Earth and be with him, and she knows that she’ll die and that will leave a hole in Legolas’ heart taht will never heal. (I’ve made myself really sad writing this and I HAVE to add that since mortal people on Valinor do die, there will come a day when Legolas will also lose Gimli and I’m note sure that the poor thing will be able to recover. I can totally see Legolas choosing to die in Valinor and just staying in the Halls of Mandos, never returning to his hröa, his body, until the Dagor Dagorath, the Battle of all Battles. Imma gonna cry for a bit now, brb). 2. Home – Phillip Phillips Hold on, to me as we go As we roll down this unfamiliar road And although this wave is stringing us along Just know you're not alone 'Cause I'm going to make this place your home This second song is more about the theme of the whole fic than just their relationship, but I see it as Legolas talking to Elin. Elin comes from our world, but she doesn’t really leave anything behind – anything but her uncle and her job. She’s always lived in the same house, even after her parents passed away, and she’s always been kind of a loner. She’s got friends, sure, but she kind of lives her life just passing by, not really taking risks or doing the things she really longs for. She loves her home, but when she was younger she dreamt of living in the city. She just never left when her parents died, cause the house was all she had left from them. She loves to travel and dreamt of seeing the whole world, but then she was an orphan and had to manage college and work at the same time, so she chose to study from home. She just accepted what life threw at her and never tried to fight her fate. She complied, and was contented. But then she was pushed into Middle Earth, on a journey she didn’t want to take, and everything changed for her. She had no home. She had no way of knowing if she could ever go back to her world. Where does she really fit in Middle Earth? Where does she really fit in her life? Her disappearence barely had any effect on her time. Where is home for her? So, throughout the story she will struggle with these questions, this searching for belonging, and to her surprise she will find it in Legolas. His hand will be the hand showing her home, and he will try his best to make her feel like she belongs. Cause she does. 3. Stand by you – Rachel Platten. Even if we're breaking down, we can find a way to break through Even if we can't find heaven, I'll walk through hell with you Love, you're not alone, 'cause I'm gonna stand by you Even if we can't find heaven, I'm gonna stand by you Even if we can't find heaven, I'll walk through hell with you Love, you're not alone, 'cause I'm gonna stand by you Yeah, you're all I never knew I needed And the heart, sometimes it's unclear why it's beating And love, if your wings are broken We can brave through those emotions too 'Cause I'm gonna stand by you Oh, truth, I guess truth is what you believe in And faith, I think faith is helping to reason No, no, no, love, if your wings are broken Borrow mine so yours can open too 'Cause I'm gonna stand by you This last song kind of comprises the themes I’ve talked about in the others: death and belonging. It can be seen from both points of view, though I usually imagine is Elin who sings it (maybe ‘cause the singer is a woman). The War of the Ring is the hell they have to brave through and leaves them tired, broken and hurt – but they’re are gonna be there for each other, even when they know that, at the end of everything, Heaven is not something they can reach. They will power through the war, fight alongside one another, be each other wings and hands and eyes and, when it all ends, that’s all they will have left. Each other. Elin knows there’s no Valinor for her. Legolas knows it too. But their love will be their Heaven, if nothing else can be. They will stand by each other through hell, through heaven, through life and through death. If you're still reading after this long AF post and would like to check the playlist, here's a link! And, in case the fic caught someone's attention, here it is. This looong post talks about things that hasn't happened yet - but it's a Tenth Walker Legolas x OFC fic, so you could see them coming! Also, the fic is written in Spanish, sorry folks! Although I'm not completely against the idea of translating it to English someday, if there's demand.

[pandoraylamcraziness]

Look, I have to wait AT LEAST until 3am until the wonderful soul that uploads the episodes well, upload this one.

BUT, I’ve been thinking a LOT about what Alec is gonna do with Asmodeus’ deal since the preview came, and I swear, there’s a little voice at the back of my head that has been singing (and sometimes screaming) for the whole week:

♩ ♪ ♫ ♬ ♭ “Alec could trade his mortal blood in exchange of  Magnus’ magic and THEY WOULD BE INMORTAL HUSBAAAAANDS”  ♩ ♪ ♫ ♬ ♭

Like, I know this idea is from one of the BEST fics I’ve ever read (no matter the fandom), but I’m here like, listen, THAT’S THE SOLUTION!!!!1!!!! Alec trades his mortality for the man he loves, and Asmodeus is impressed as fuck bc no matter how fucked up father he is, he cares in his own (evil) way about Magnus and this was kind of a test (he would never let Magnus die of old, of all things, he would shwooop in the last moment to save him and make him indebted to him, bc what he wants is to be loved and admired by Magnus, even if he doesn’t know how to do it, y’know, in a healthy way). Bc he knows about this- shadowhunter his naive son is fallen and sacrificed so much for. And he wants to show Magnus how lacking is everyone by him. He wants Magnus to come to Edom with him, after all. 

And if he’s wrong and this nephilim is actually worthy, well, then he would be in the good graces of his favourite son. Who knows, maybe if the couple is inmortal now, they could be a family of shorts. They’ll have all the time in the world to have FUN!!! And he will never let Magnus forget that he’s happy bc of him.

You know, it would make sense in a Prince of Hell kinda logic.

But no matter what happens, I keep reminding myself that we always have fic. Bc my worst fears are that either a) they make Magnus regain his magic but not his inmortality, thus making them both mortal, or b) Magnus regain his magic and inmortality and they get married and that’s it, they leaves us wondering how the fuck are they gonna cope with the fact Alec will die someday.

And honestly? No matter how the fandom is practically CHANTING “Inmortal Husbands”, I think is gonna be option “a” and we will even have to say “thank you” afterwards. I’m very happy for new content, but I don’t have many hopes in the writters tbh. Fandom writes def better.

[jey-chan]

The forgotten temple and the secret heritage ch2

woow…. I I really didn’t think this is was going to be that good. So… there is the next chapert, hope you will like it and I should thanks my friend Angel again for begging so kind and patient with my bad grammar. (Really you are the best!)

Mahiru really didn’t know what to think anymore.

In the last 24 hours she not only moves in the school dorms, but finds a neko spirit guardian of a forgotten temple in her dorm. The neko was a vampire too and has information about her mysterious dead father.

Oh! And she made a contract with the neko vampire spirit guardian after killing a powerful demon that suddenly popped up in the school gardens.

She really was hoping that was a weird dream, but now that she was in a chair at noon eating a toast, she can see that is wasn’t a dream.

“So….”

The cat vampire give her a lazy glare.

“yeah?” asked kuro.

“… what exactly I am supposed to do now that I have made the contract? Oh and more importantly, you don’t eat cat food right? Or need b- blood s so often r- right?”

The spirit saw how she got nervous in the last sentence, was she afraid of blood? Oh man. Don’t tell me she is one of those humans that passed out for the very fact of saw some little blood? If that’s the case then she was in a very creepy exposition therapy.

And… did she say cat food? The mere thought of it made him nervous and sad. That stuff was awful!

“you give me some of that terrible thing called cat food and I throw your homework”

The girl made a little giggling sound before moving to ask again the first and second question.

“….well I don’t like taking blood so only if its necessary I will take some of yours… a little, only a glup and that is and for what to do…. Well honestly I don’t know… you are the first eve I had in all my immortal life so… I really don’t know but… there is a distance limit and we can’t be apart for more than 6 hours or bad things happens…” the vampire lest a sigh. “what a pain… having an eve is so troublesome that I can die… trying to remember is something I can’t deal…” and with that he got in his cat form.

Mahiru blinked, before remembering something important.

“Do you know how we made it here? I mean the last thing I remember was passing out in the gardens so….”

The cat rolled his head.

“I think it was one of my brothers… or my sister I really don’t know”

“you have siblings?! That’s cool! I had always wanted a sibling but… I think it's a little hard to have one now”

“oh, your parents don’t have alergies to cats right? And… why are you here?”

Mahiru give him a sad face before shaking her head.

“I don’t have parents. I never knew my dad and my mom was single. She died in an accident, I came here to learn the circus arts and one day be a legal member of my uncles circus”

“Oh well.. so your uncle adopted you? Just like you did with me”

Mahiru noded before seeing the clock.

“Omg! It’s already so late?” and with that the girl ran of with her backpack

Kuro only grabbed the last toast and ran after his mistress.

Once the apartment was alone, a ghostly young man appears in the lobby.

A person that wears  Victorians clothes put his eyes in the place.

“so… this is our new home, huh? It’s simple and lovely… Yup I like it.” the ghost put his gloved hand in the TV remote and started changing channels until he found something that was worthy in his eyes.

The show was about a girl in a dark blue jeans, a traditional Mexican looking blouse, sandals and an eye mask in her face.

Her dark hair was in a strange bun that looked like a butterfly and the most amazing thing was her big black butterfly wings.

“I know I should be preparing things for my formal introduction to my little descendent but… Obsidiane (An: I know its Obsidian but I put it like that because I like it how its hear, so im sorry)  can’t wait” he said before started to sing along the silly opening of the super hero themed show.

Meanwhile, Mahiru was trying to re-establish her breath in her desk.

“T-that’s was the best run for school I have ever had” she admitted to her cat.

Kuro was laying alongside her face and arms in the desk so he make sure to whispered to her some little concern.

“hey… does schools allows pets? Last I checked they didn’t”

“This school does. It’s for the training animals class. Something that is mandatory to all students in the first year. If I want to learn more and practice about that then I need to put in the six curses”

“so now im your practice bean… what a pain… you are so mean, making a cute little cat like myself working so hard for humans entertainment… I can die” the vampire cat started to roll in the desk, ignoring the glare that his mistress was sending him.

“You are many things but “such a cute little cat” is out of the question”

Just in the time kuro was about to do a comeback, a short guy with dark purple hair, in a strange uniform come in and the most awesome thing about him was the butterfly that was in his hair.

‘is that All of Love?’ he asked himself, before being lifted by strangers hands.

“… you call it kuro because of the fur? Really Mahi, you need to be more creative. If you stay with the “simple is best” of yours then I bet you we will be here for three months. You need more creativity and awesome in a go!” the guy that dared to pick him was the most exotic thing that Kuro had seen in all his immortal life.

It was tall and slender, had red eyes and a goofy smile with an annoying love glare to his eve, but the most he give away it was his curly green hair.

Yes you had read it right, this guy has green hair and red eyes.

And apparently he is a good friend of Mahiru, but the way his soul was acting, the guardian suspected its was a vampire. Why does Mahiru want to be friends with one?.

“Oh come on Sakuya! Don’t bother Kuro! It’s a good name for him and I will not change it for whatever one you had in mind”

Kuro fell a little bit of happiness, unbelievable and proud to hear that.

His eve cared for him even after knowing him for less than 24 hours.

“why not? I’m sure ‘Lordvacat’ its better than Kuro!”

“L-lordvacat?! Really?! You had been seeing so much shojo manga! His name is Kuro and that’s all! So you better drop the subject there Sak-kun!”

The name that his girl called the vegetable boy made him become a tomato.

“D-Don’t say that! Y-You know it's my only weakness!” says the boy in an intent to defend himself but the teacher comes in the classroom and the boy sits down in his desk.

 Later that day Kuro saw something very interesting in the Sakuya guy. Aparently he has a crush in Mahiru. ‘I wonder what he is thinking that old odd guy. And now that I think about him… its unusual for him to not have shown up now. His desire has come halfway through’

“…Don’t worry Sakuya. I will be fine, I only need some bells and needles. Thanks for coming! And see you tomorrow” kuro came back from his thoughts, to see the vegetable boy leaving the side of his mistress.

They had gone to the city to buy some materials for the cultural festival that was supposed to be in 3 months. And after 2 hours of wondering around the streets and stores, the boy had a call and said he had to go.

One our later and Mahiru with kuro in her shoulder were leaving another store with the materials necessary, but something was not right in the mind of the vampire and somehow the girl had sensed it too.

“Kuro… it is normal that I feel like someone is watching us with some very ill intentions? And that something bad will be happening in short?” the girl was nervous and honestly the vampire didn’t blame her. He was nervous too but he was nervous for her.

He recognized the smell that a vampire left before killing.

“For your spiritual powers, yes. But for your powers at an eve I don’t know. This seems problematic so better we run away….”

Before the vampire guardian can finish, a man in a white tuxedo and top hat started to talk to the people in the screet.

“AHAHAHA! COME, COME! Come and see my better performance!”

The people was seeing him now and the strange mage put his cold red eyes in a boy that Kuro was sure they had talked earlier with the Sakuya guy.

“Oh! But, why the quick run? You do know why do I stopped you? A) because you ignored me. B) because I wanted you to be my helper? C) because I’m hungry? Or D) because I wanted to kill you?” the mage put a maniac grin in his face before took the boy bit his neck and put the canines in his fresh, releasing a blood river.

“The answer is ALL OF THEM! AHAHAHAHAHAHAAAHAHAA! COME, COME AND BE MY DINNER!” the Vampire started to laugh and yell to the crowd.

“R-Ruiji - kun! K- kuro, that man hurt Ruji! We need to help him!”

“can’t deal…” says the cat before using his body to sheld the girl of a very dangerous sword that the mage had pulled off of his hat, and was aiming to her.

“hahahaha! So you really are here huh? Sleepy Ashyuuuu! Tsubakiuuun will be happy to see you! Your corpse that is! haaahahahahahaha!” the maniac man was with his foot in the chest of the guardian neko that was lying in the street.

“hey, hey! Lets’ play a game? Shall we? It’s called: who can kill more people in a bit? Isn't it exciting? I bet I can win! Haaaha-auch! Hey who dared throw me a rock in the face!”

For the surprise and horror of both vampires, the one that had thrown the rock talked.

“It was me! And stop with this you maniac mage!” says Mahiru, who currently was armed with a school supplier.

“…you. Threw. Me. A. rock. In. the face.” Says the man.

“Yes I did, is there a problem with that?”

“…You. A girl, a stupid little girl who only go to what? Middle school? Throw me a rock in the face to save the patetic inmortal life of this stupid vampire?”

“HE IS NOT PATHETIC AND SURE ARE LESS STUPID!”

“you dared to try to stop me?! The Great Bakuria?! To save this vampire?! HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAA! That’s cuteeee and interesting. But.. you are noting more than a stupid girl so… better kill you now” and with that the now know as Bakuria, threw himself after the girl, and she dogged with elegance, in the last second giving him a kick in the back part of his head.

Then she ran to her vampire cats side.

“Kuro! Are you all right? Does this can be healed be my b-blood?!”

The vampire put himself in a siting position before nodding.

“T-Then you need to drink it! Here!” the girl exposed his arm to the vampire guardian and seeing that there wasn’t another way, closed his eyes and bit it.

The great tatse of her blood invaded his mind and mouth. In each gulp he tasted, he felt the effect of the contract.

He felt his wounds close and the energy to fight, he felt how the aches of the last fight left him to never come back. And he sensed the desire to protect  the girl.

His heart ached in joy to find that the girl cared for him. That she accepted the way the contract was made and that her most wanted desire was to help him, and protect the ones she loved the most and the innocent people that were in danger of this atrocity.

So with one last glup the chains appeared and he answered with showing his claws. He will protect Mahiru.

“oooh so you had a eve? You the sloth servamp that never ever before had a master to drink blood had now you have one?! And is a stupid little girl not the least! Hahahahahaha! Tsubaki will find this hilarious haahahaha!”

“do you know him?” the girl ignored the man.

“no, I don’t. I’m sure that I don’t know him and neither have I known a Tsubaki”

“HEY DON’T IGNORE ME!”

Kuro glared lazily to him.

“you know, whatever I do to you is because of her. I’m only following orders. So don’t blame me please” it was said with a nonsense and joking way but Mahiru had heard it in the way it really was meaningful.

Kuro had fear to being blamed for something that he do for necessary times.

But right now is was not the time to think about that. She will make sure that he doesn’t do something he regretted once the fight finished, she was his partner and she will do her part in this fight.

“You had caused pain to innocent people so now you need to pay for you actions. We are going to stop you!”

And with that, Kuro throw himself to the maniatic mage, opening him in the neck, torso, and legs.

The man fell to the food and started to gasp for breathing, but a cough interrupted him then and there.

Kuro took him from his long pink hair and open his mouth to finish him, but a pull in his chain stopped him.

“Kuro. We only wanted to stop him, not kill him! I know you don’t want to take his life. So stop it now!”

The voice of his eve made him come back to the present and drop the man.

“Haahahaha you think you had me? Well not!” the man do a puff and then a doll version of the vampire was in the street.

Mahiru blinked and took it.

“huh? Is that all? Is it dead?” before she can so anything the doll come to life and started to laughing.

“Ahahahahaha! Of course not! You idiot! I’m going to make a curse in your- aw aw aw… please don’t do that to me now, aw aw aw” the vampire doll was cutting his sentence because of a glowing dark claw that impaled him in the hat.

Kuro started to do some cat activities with it.

“So. Who sent you there? And why did you said Tsubaki will be pleasant to know that Kuro had me?” started with the questions Mahiru.

“I sent him” the sloth pair turned they head to the right to see a man in a kimono, black sunglasses, and a sadistic expression.

But mahiru saw more than the love for pain in another’s.

Oh no.

She saw a man with sadness and a misunderstanding for life, family and other important concepts.

“who are you?” asked the girl.

“Let me tell you a story!” says the doll.

“Once upon a time, a spirit guardian becomes a vampire that was suppose to have a master and answered to him. The servamp spirit returned to his home only to find that there wasn’t one. A man that was called a priest adopted him and he became the family guardian. The servamp swore to never have a eve but that promise went away the day he met his new priest. A girl made the vampire contract and choosed to walk the dangerous path ”

“Does they will come alive after the dark? Or will they find they last of the days? What do you think Tsubaky?”

The man smiled with some malice.

“I Think that the war is about to start. And is nice to finally meet you. Ni-san”

“Big Brother?” both the girl and the servamp asked in unison and equal curiosity.

“What a pain, I think you are mistaken. I don’t have a brother with that name”

“oh no, my lovely ni-san. I’m Tsubaky, the 8th servamp, the champion of melancholy”

“8th?! Y-you have 8 brothers?!”

“Actually, they are 5 brothers and one sister… and I didn’t know we had another one”

“are all of you cats… oh no I can see it now. They are fox ears and fox tails” the girl pointed out the obvious when she saw the extra parts of the body.

“We are a very variant group. Im a fox, our sister is a wolf, the one that is before me is a butterfly, there is one that is a serpent, and one is a pig. The most annoying is a hedgedog. It’s a very unique family don’t you think so?” says the man transforming in a black and red kitsune.

“All of you were once a spirit guardian?”

“Yes, well more of them. I’m more a yokai than a guardian. But it's funny to watch people die”

“So you are the one that is behind the attacks that my friends had warned me about. Why do you do it?!”

“Yes I had been the one ordering them. And so what? I can do what I want, and so what?. I will kill them all and so what?”

“you can’t do that!”

“ You want to stop me? hahahahahahahahahahaha….. boooring. Well I just come here for my friend there, so see you around… Sloth pair. Oh and if I were you I will watch my back… right now I just declare the war against all of the servamps! Hahahahahahaha!” and like the wind the vampire of Melancholy and his maniac fellow left the street.

 @tina-nightray @just-servamp-trash @angel-of-music-hyde-no-longer

[betwixt-words-and-worlds-blog]

Written January 14, 2017

By Jonathan Meza

“What are your thoughts on marriage?”

I was actually asked this a few days before the start of the New Year.

“You mean, in general? Because that’s a pretty broad question.”

It IS a pretty broad question, but I actually already had an answer that I had formulating and keep revising as time passes. I mean, I’ve had a lot of time to think about this, especially since, at my age, you get asked that a lot, ha ha. (Seriously, since moving to southern California for work after graduating college, I’ve been told to consider marriage so many times that it’s a bit unnerving. Like, chill, y’all! It’ll happen when it happens :P)

(As a quick side note: any of you single folk ever have to give an exposition for church on the topic of marriage even though you’ve never been married? Because I had to do that very often; I started taking prayers at 13 and, because I don’t come from a congregation with a lot of members, I usually took more than one prayer every month by the time I was older. The only reason I mention this is because I’ve always wondered what the married church members thought about me talking about marriage, having never had experienced it myself. Just an interesting thought, ha ha.)

When I think about the topic of marriage, one of the first Biblical citations that come to mind is the following:

Ecclesiastes 4:9-12 (NKJV)

Two are better than one,

Because they have a good reward for their labor.

For if they fall, one will lift up his companion.

But woe to him who is alone when he falls,

For he has no one to help him up.

Again, if two lie down together, they will keep warm;

But how can one be warm alone?

Though one may be overpowered by another, two can withstand him.

And a threefold cord is not quickly broken.

It’s understandable why such a verse would be used to describe aspects of marriage: the juxtaposition of the benefits of two people versus one highlights how marriage can bring about mutual security and assistance. But what stands out at me in this verse is not that; no, actually, what caught my attention most in these few verses is probably the least acknowledged and most (seemingly) uninteresting sentence:

And a threefold cord is not quickly broken.

Amid these references to “one”s and “two”s, we get a “three” reference. Now, you’re probably wondering: why does that matter? Well, it matters because then my next part wouldn’t make nearly as much sense lol. Bear with me a little bit!

When people think of marriage, they like to think of the idea of love. And when they think of Christian love and marriage, they usually refer to one of the most widely cited Biblical references of what the concept of love is: 1 Corinthians 13. (Seriously though, all of you people who plan to get married: get a bit more creative on y’all’s wedding invites! The Bible has more verses to choose from, y’know? :P)

The Apostle Paul, author of both letters to the early church members of Corinth, is usually given the appellation of “the Apostle of Love” precisely because of this chapter. I mean, just look at what he says:

1 Corinthians 13:4-7 (NKJV)

Love suffers long and is kind;

love does not envy;

love does not parade itself, is not puffed up;

does not behave rudely, does not seek its own, is not provoked, thinks no evil;

does not rejoice in iniquity, but rejoices in the truth;

bears all things, believes all things, hopes all things, endures all things.

Very lofty and beautiful ideals of what love is and should be, indeed! But, again, there is a part of this ubiquitous chapter that most people seem to overlook: at the end of this chapter of love, the Apostle Paul mentions that, in the end, three virtues will remain:

1 Corinthians 13:13 (NKJV)

And now abide faith, hope, love, these three;

But the greatest of these is love.

Remember what I said earlier about the verse in Ecclesiastes making a reference to “a threefold cord”? Here’s where that comes into play. (See? I promise I can make sense!)

Most people architect the foundation of marriage to be love, solely and exclusively. But I disagree slightly; I believe a truly well-built foundation for marriage is those three virtues that the Apostle Paul mentions, with love definitely being the greatest. I’ll go over what I believe each one of these things entails and how they work together.

Hope-

Firstly in God and then in your partner and your marriage as well. Having a feeling of trust is important for any relationship (romantic or platonic) to flourish into something more stable and concrete; that is why hope, a foresight of what is yet to come, is important. Mind you, having foresight or an idea of a future together is not enough for a stable marriage foundation; there are plenty of things that can be dreamed or imagined, but won’t necessarily come to fruition just by foresight alone. That brings me to the second virtue:

Faith-

The Apostolic letter to the Hebrews describes the nature in which these two virtues complement one another and are necessarily bound to one another:

Hebrews 11:1 (NKJV)

Now faith is the substance of things hoped for,

the evidence of things not seen.

If hope is foresight, faith is a foretaste; faith provides sustenance and feeds our ambition for the future. That is why faith is a keystone in the foundation of marriage; faith in your partner, in who they are, in what they stand for, in the potential of what they can be, sustains us for the long-run. Ever stop to consider the hymn that the church sings to honor those aspiring to marry?

142 - Dios bendiga las almas unidas

-2-

Que los dos que al altar se aproximan

A jurarse su fe mutuamente,

Busquen siempre de Dios en la fuente

El secreto de dicha inmortal.

As you can see, we acknowledge the fact that by drawing close to the wedding alter to bind themselves in matrimony they are in fact vowing their mutual faith to one another, not love! That is because there must be a firm conviction that these two souls truly want to be together. But, don’t disregard the final virtue just yet:

Love-

Of these three beautiful virtues, the Apostle Paul names love the greatest among them. And with good reason! The aforementioned chapter in the letter to the Corinthians about the concept of love captures the nuances and entailments of how love should be practiced. Followed in this way, love can be God’s active force to work miracles in this world; acts of compassion and kindness towards our fellow human (in this case, our significant other) find their source in this deep fountain known as love.

Hope provides the goal, faith provides the map, and loves acts as the guiding compass to help us reach our destination. These three, joined and bound to one another, form a threefold cord that shall not be easily broken; a fortified bond that’ll keep two souls tightly together and not give way to the strains of life.

I guess that’s why they call getting married “tying the knot”!

Closing thoughts: so, that’s more or less my take on marriage. It’s very lofty, but I’ve always been a romantic; I like the view from having my head up in the clouds, ha ha. Maybe my perspective will change (hopefully for the better) when I actually get married. When will that be? Only God knows. I’m just going to roll with the punches.

[musicstormmedia]

“Estamos muy entusiasmados de finalmente poder bajar a Sudamérica y tocar para todos ustedes”

Interview also available in English

Unleash The Archers es una banda canadiense de heavy metal que nació en 2007 y que ya lleva editados cinco discos de estudio. El último de ellos, titulado Apex, salió a la venta a principios de junio a través de Napalm Records, y con motivo de su lanzamiento, tuvimos la oportunidad de hacerle un par de preguntas a Brittney Slayes, vocalista y líder del grupo.

MSM: Apex es un álbum conceptual, y no es el primero en su carrera. ¿Disfrutan hacer este estilo de álbumes?

BS: Sí, disfrutamos mucho de hacer álbumes conceptuales. Hay algo diferente en cuanto a escribir un álbum que sigue una historia todo a lo largo. Es todo un desafío asegurarse de que las canciones suenen como si proviniesen del mismo sitio, emocional y musicalmente. Es más fácil, y a la vez más difícil, escribir las letras, porque sabés exactamente sobre lo que tenés que cantar, pero a veces no encontrás las palabras correctas para transmitir el mensaje, y eso puede ser frustrante. A pesar de todo, es una experiencia muy gratificante.

MSM: Apex is a conceptual album, and it is not the first one on your career. Do you enjoy making thematic albums?

BS: Yes we enjoy concept albums very much! There is something different about writing an album with one linear story throughout, it is a challenge to make sure each song sounds like it comes from the same place, emotionally and musically. The lyrics are easier and yet more difficult to write at the same time, because you know exactly what you need to sing about, but sometimes you cannot find the perfect words to convey the message properly, and that can be frustrating. Overall though, it is a very rewarding experience!

MSM: ¿A quién se le ocurrió la historia de “El Inmortal” y “La Matriarca”

BS: ¡A mí! De hecho, todo comenzó con ellos dos. Yo creé a “El inmortal” como protagonista, y le inventé toda una historia de trasfondo que eventualmente lo conduciría hasta “La Matriarca”. Después, se me ocurrió la idea de que ella necesitara a cuatro hijos para llevar a cabo el ritual que le permitiría alcanzar la inmortalidad, de manera de así poder tener canciones que no fuesen todas iguales líricamente, pero que aún así pudieran ser interpretadas como parte de un todo. Cuatro hijos = cuatro canciones, más la introducción de los protagonistas, su encuentro, el momento en el que se separan, y hasta un prólogo… Al final, creo que todo resultó bastante bien. O eso espero.

MSM: Who came up with the story of ‘The Immortal’ and ‘The Matriarch’?

BS: That was me! The whole album started with those two actually… I created The Immortal as our protagonist, and then built him a backstory that would eventually lead him to The Matriarch. I then came up with idea of her having four sons required for a ritual to achieve immortality as a way to have songs that were not all about the same thing lyrically, but still could be interpreted as part of a larger whole. Four sons = four songs, plus the introduction of our main characters, their meeting, their parting ways and then a prologue. It all worked out quite well in the end I think! I hope.

MSM: El álbum recibe el mismo nombre que la última canción del disco, Apex. ¿Qué significa este tema en particular para ustedes?

BS: Apex no es solamente el nombre de la montaña en la que vive nuestro protagonista, sino también el estado mental que él alcanza cuando está allí. Es una especie de felicidad; una decisión interna de poder aceptar lo que el destino le ha preparado y de sacar lo mejor de eso. En el estribillo, él pregunta “¿Puedes seguirme hasta Apex?” y ese fue mi modo de pedirle a nuestra audiencia que hiciese lo mismo: aceptar el destino y elegir la felicidad. Apex es un sitio al que todos podemos ir en nuestro interior, un lugar de paz y soledad, y de aceptación.

MSM: The album has the same name as the last song, Apex. What does this song mean to you?

BS: Apex is not just the name of the mountain that our protagonist resides in, but also the state of mind he achieves when he is there. It is a kind of happiness; an internal decision to accept what fate has laid out for him and to make the best of it. In the chorus he asks ‘Can you follow me to Apex?” and that was my way of asking our listeners to do the same, to accept fate and choose happiness. Apex is a place we can all go within ourselves, a place of peace and solitude and acceptance.

MSM: “False Walls” parece ser distinta a las demás canciones del álbum, o al menos eso es lo que pensamos cuando lo escuchamos por primera vez. Nos gustó mucho el sonido progresivo en este tema en particular. ¿Tienen pensado seguir incursionando en este tipo de composiciones?

BS: ¡Me pone muy feliz que lo hayas notado y que te haya gustado esta canción! Queríamos probar hacer algo nuevo en este tema, el cual ha recibido tanto buenas como malas críticas, pero no nos molesta. La idea era hacer un tema conmovedor, algo más tranquilo, en vez del estilo rápido y fuerte que hacemos siempre, y se enfoca más en las voces que en los riffs. El solo fluye libremente y es fascinante, y se ajusta a la letra muy bien. Queríamos que sonara como una especie de hipnotización, tal y como el hijo, con sus palabras, hipnotizaba al inmortal. Siempre nos gusta estar probando nuevas cosas, así que tranquilamente podríamos hacer algo como esto en el siguiente disco, y quizás hasta incluso un poco más progresivo la próxima vez.

MSM: “False Walls” seems to be different than any other song in the album, or at least, that was what we thought when we listened to it. We really liked the progression of the sound in this track in particular. Are you going to venture a bit more on this type of compositions?

BS: I am so glad you noticed and liked this track! We were definitely trying something new on this one, and it has received both good and bad reviews, but we are ok with that. This track was aiming for something a little more soulful, it was mid-paced instead of our usual fast, loud and in-your-face style, and it focused more on the vocals than the riffage. The solo was even free-flowing and a little bit mesmerizing, which tied into the lyrics very well. This whole song was supposed to kind of hypnotize, just as the son with his words was hypnotizing the Immortal… We always like to try new things in our music so we could very well do something like this on the next record, perhaps even a bit more progressive next time!

MSM: Como pudimos ver, el arte de tapa estuvo a cargo de Ken Sarafin. ¿Es la primera vez que trabajan con él? ¿Le dio rienda suelta a su imaginación o ustedes le indicaron más o menos lo que querían que él hiciese?

BS: Sí, esta es la primera vez que trabajamos con Ken, y quedamos muy sorprendidos con lo que hizo, nos encanta su trabajo. Él tomó algunas ideas e imágenes que nosotros teníamos y las convirtió en una pieza suya. En sí, lo que se ve en la imagen fue originalmente nuestra idea, pero él la llevó a otro nivel, es hermosa. Si me lo preguntás, creo que debería estar colgada en la pared de una galería de arte. No es nuestra, es de él, nosotros sólo la estamos usando por un tiempo. 

MSM: As we could see, Ken Sarafin created the album artwork for Apex. Is this the first time you work with him? Did he do whatever he wanted or did you tell him what you already had in mind?

BS: Yes this was our first time working with Ken, and we are so impressed with what he created for us, we just love his work. He took some ideas and images that we had and turned them into a piece all his own. The object of the image was initially our idea yes but he took it to a whole other level! It is just beautiful; if you ask me I think it should be on the wall at an art gallery! Really it’s not ours, it’s his, and we are just using it for a while.

MSM: Apex es un disco bastante cohesivo de principio a fin. Un gran álbum en verdad. ¿Cómo fue la respuesta del público?

BS: ¡Muchas gracias! Teníamos altas expectativas, por supuesto, pero a lo largo de los años he aprendido que, sin expectativas, no sufrís decepciones, así que simplemente dejamos que las cosas cayeran por su propio peso. No quise generarme expectativas de que las cosas ocurrieran de cierto modo, y por eso fui feliz cuando nuestros fans nos dijeron que les había gustado el álbum, eso fue suficiente para mí. El hecho de que haya captado la atención de mucha gente y de que incluso esté llegando tan lejos como a Argentina es una maravilla y una sorpresa más que bienvenida. 

MSM: Apex is a pretty cohesive album from beginning to end, a great record indeed. How was the public response?

BS: Thank you! We had high hopes of course, but over the years I have learned that with no expectations you experience no disappointments so we just kind of tossed it out into the universe and let things fall where they may. I didn’t allow myself to expect it to turn out any certain way and was just happy when our fans told us they liked it that was enough for me. The fact that it seems to have garnered a lot of attention and is even reaching as far as Argentina is just a wonderful and welcome surprise.  

MSM: Gracias a internet, muchas personas provenientes de países lejanos, como es el caso de Argentina, han descubierto su música. ¿Qué se siente saber que su música es escuchada en todo el mundo?

BS: ¡Es un sentimiento asombroso y surrealista! Internet es una maldición y una bendición al mismo tiempo, porque hay tantas bandas, que es difícil ser escuchado por encima de todo ese ruido, pero también nos ha permitido llegar a lugares a los que nunca podríamos haber llegado antes. Es fantástico saber que tu música ha alcanzado los oídos de distintas personas alrededor del mundo, de hombres, mujeres, jóvenes, ancianos… La música nos une a todos, ¡especialmente el heavy metal! Tenemos familia alrededor del mundo gracias al metal; fans que se han convertido en grandes amigos, y nosotros mismos hemos descubierto algunas bandas increíbles, que de otro modo, nunca hubiéramos conocido. Es un mundo pequeño y muy musical. 

MSM: Thanks to internet, many people coming from remote countries, like ours (Argentina), have discovered your music. How do you feel when you realize your music is listened all over the world?

BS: It’s an amazing and surreal feeling! The internet is a curse and a blessing because there are so many bands it is hard to be heard above all the noise, but it has also allowed us to reach places that never would have been possible before. It is fantastic to know that your music has reached the ears of people all over the world, of men, women, the young, the old… Music unites us all, especially heavy metal! We have family all over the world because of metal; fans that have become great friends and we ourselves have discovered some awesome bands that otherwise we never would have known. It’s a small and very musical world. 

MSM: ¿Cabe la posibilidad de que en algún momento visiten nuestro país?

BS: ¡Esperamos que sí! Nos encantaría bajar hasta Sudamérica y ya estamos trabajando en ello, para hacerlo en la primavera de 2018 (nuestro otoño). Si todo sale como lo planeado, estaremos tocando todo a lo largo de Sudamérica, como así también en México, y nos quedaremos por lo menos un par de semanas. Estamos muy entusiasmados de finalmente poder tocar para todos ustedes, ¡hemos oído mucho acerca de la escena metalera en América Latina! No podemos esperar a vivirla en carne propia.

MSM: Is there any chance of you visiting our country in the future?

BS: We sure hope so! We would LOVE to get down to South America and are working on doing just that for spring 2018  J  If all goes as planned we will play all across South America as well as Mexico and be there for at least a couple of weeks. We are so excited to finally come down and play for you all, we have heard so much about the metal scene in Latin America! We can’t wait to experience it for ourselves.

MSM: En todas nuestras entrevistas tenemos una sección llamada “Until Your Last Breath”, en la que le pedimos al artista que nos recomiende cinco álbumes que hay que escuchar antes de morir. ¿Cuál sería tu lista de recomendados?

BS: ¡Qué buena pregunta! Mi lista sería la siguiente, sin seguir ningún orden en particular. 

1. Soilwork – The Living Infinite

2. Iron Maiden – Brave New World

3. Iced Earth – Crucible of Man

4. Lost Horizon – Awakening The World

5. Queensryche – Operation Mindcrime

Los cinco álbumes son increíbles y han sido una gran influencia en mí y en mi estilo vocal para Unleash The Archers.

MSM: We have a section called “Until Your Last Breath”, in which we ask to the artist to tell us five albums that you have to listen before you die. How would your list be?

BS: Oh what a great question! My list would be as follows:

 1. Soilwork – The Living Infinite

2. Iron Maiden – Brave New World

3. Iced Earth – Crucible of Man

4. Lost Horizon – Awakening The World

5. Queensryche – Operation Mindcrime

 And those are in no particular order; all five are incredible and have been a huge influence on myself and my vocal style for UTA!

MSM: Por último, te dejamos este espacio para que les digas unas palabras a los fans de UTA en Argentina. ¡Muchas gracias por tu tiempo!

BS: ¡Muchas gracias a ustedes por su tiempo! Gracias por escuchar Unleash The Archers y por apoyarnos aún desde tan lejos. Si nos siguen en Facebook y Bandsintown, estaremos anunciando por allí las fechas de nuestros shows, ¡así que prepárense para el año que viene!

MSM: To finish you can have this space to say whatever you want to your fans in Argentina. Thanks for your time!

BS: Thank you for your time! Thanks for listening to UTA and for supporting us even from so far away. If you follow us on Facebook and Bandsintown we will announce our tour dates on there so be ready for Spring 2018!

   Entrevista y traducción: Romina Ordazzo